Accidentally! When the referee blew the whistle for the end of the game, looking at the numbers displayed on the screen, all the Nets fans in the Barclays Center felt unreal.

They couldn't believe that the Nets had lost on their home court, and Nets fans, who had become accustomed to the rhythm of winning, suddenly seemed to be unable to accept the result.

The result of this defeat was completely unexpected by all fans, and the entire Barclays Center Arena was silent, and the atmosphere was extremely depressing.

In stark contrast to the fans, the reporters on the scene, both positive and negative are news, and even in the eyes of many reporters, the Nets' unexpected loss is a more valuable news.

As during the Nets' winning streak, the press conference was already packed with reporters from all walks of life, and just after reporters were anxiously waiting for half an hour, Nets coach Johnson was late, but he was attended by Nets backup center Reggie Evans, who only played less than five minutes in the game.

"Frustrated, yes, frustrated is an appropriate word, I don't think anyone, including me, could have predicted such a situation" Before reporters could ask questions, Coach Johnson was the first to express his displeasure with the game.

"Avery, what do you think is the biggest problem for the Nets in this game?" At this time, the New York Times reporter sitting in the first row of the media area was the first to ask questions.

"It's hard to pinpoint any of the problems because there are so many problems – lack of chemistry, rhythm of the offense and defense, defensive rebounding, all of which was frustrating today," said Coach Johnson with a wry smile in front of a lot of media. As much respect as I have for the opponents in this game, they played really well today, but if we want to make a difference in the playoffs, we have to be consistent."

"Coach, what do you think of Lopez, who started today, doing?" An ESPN reporter asked.

'Oh, he's a very important player for us, he played a perfect half, but in the second half he was a little rusty, maybe because he didn't play for a long time. And his rebounds today weren't very good. But I have faith in him, the season has just started and he will be a consistent scorer for us," Coach Johnson gave Lopez a good positive after pointing out his problems.

"Avery. What do you feel about in today's game. Is tall and strong out of character? The New York Times reporter who asked the question again asked.

"Disorder? Gao Dazhuang contributed 18 points and 10 rebounds today. And in the most critical fourth quarter, it was he who led his teammates to launch a counterattack, if this is also called a bad play, I think you are too demanding of a rookie" In the face of reporters' questions, Coach Johnson did not hesitate to support his "beloved apprentice".

"Tall and strong have been in the league for less than 3 months. He's a player with a lot of potential, but you can't always expect him to score 30 points or 50 points a day, you can't always expect him to lead the team to win and win, we shouldn't put too much pressure on him, and in my opinion, he did a really good job today,' continued Coach Johnson.

"Coach, to be honest, in today's game, there was no chemistry between Gao Dazhuang and Lopez, and in the last moments of the game, you didn't make any changes to the lineup on the field, why?" This time the question was asked by Alex, a famous reporter from "Hoop World".

"Gao Dazhuang and Lopez appeared on the court at the same time for the first time today, it is normal that there is no tacit understanding between them, today I just gave them time to cultivate tacit understanding, as for the problem of substitutions at the last moment, in the last five minutes, we chased up, and the lineup looked very energetic at that time, so I decided not to make substitutions and play with this lineup, but unfortunately we are still a little bit worse, which is unfortunate, but the game is like this, there are losses and wins" Coach Johnson waved his hand and said helplessly.

"Coach, when the Nets were chasing the most points in the fourth quarter, it was the moment when Gao Dazhuang led the offense alone, and we seemed to be back to that winning streak period, defeating the Nets of the Clippers and Thunder, does this mean that Lopez's presence affected Gao Dazhuang's offense?" The one who asked the poignant question was a female reporter for Slam Dunk magazine.

"No, I don't think so, basketball is a team sport and we can't always count on one player, but you still point out a very key problem, which is that we rely too much on being tall and strong when it matters most" Coach Johnson changed his words and continued: "Now once the Nets' offense can't be opened, teammates are used to relying on tall and strong, which is not the performance of a good team, so we need Wallace to step up, we need Lopez to shoot those balls, we need other people to score, otherwise, Everyone knows that at the end of the game, your ball will be given to the tall and strong hands, which will make it easy for the opponent to defend."

In fact, in today's game, Nets starting center Brook Lopez shot 9 of 20 and 3 of 4 free throws, scoring 21 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block, but he only scored 2 points in the fourth quarter, let alone a rebound.

Especially in the critical moment of chasing points in the last 3 minutes, after Brook Lopes repeatedly missed good scoring opportunities, the fans at the scene couldn't help but boo him after the "iron" again and again.

This is the first time that this has happened in a Nets game.

Although none of the Nets' starters attended the postgame press conference, a number of local New York media outlets entered the Nets' locker room and interviewed the players directly, a unique initiative of the Nets' public relations department.

The Nets locker room is not big, and the tall and strong are taking a shower, so naturally Lopez has become the focus of media interviews.

Speaking of the last shot in a row, Lopez said helplessly: "I've tried my best, but my injury has affected my performance, I'm really a sinner, I missed some good shots." Some of the blocks weren't completely covered, they didn't ruin the offense, and I missed a lot of rebounds, which affected the team."

……

Just when Lopez was sincerely "reviewing" his own problems, Gao Dazhuang happened to come out of the shower room, and immediately shared half of the "offensive firepower" for Lopez, and before he could return to his locker room, Gao Dazhuang was blocked by the reporters who surrounded him.

However, the "well-informed" tall and strong man answered the reporters' questions very skillfully: affirming the performance of Lopez and other teammates, thanking the fans for their support, and taking the responsibility on himself.

In this game, he was really average in his game, shooting 7 of 14 and 3 of 3 free throws. He finished with just 18 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. He scored the fewest points since joining the Nets.

There was no valuable answer, and the reporters clearly didn't plan to let go of Tall and Strong so easily, and this was a reporter from a local Brooklyn daily newspaper who asked, "Gao, do you think you're one of the league's top scoring guards right now?" ”

"Nope. I don't think I'm currently a shooting guard in the league," the tall and strong replied simply and directly: "But." I can do it in the future."

The tall and strong answer was full of confidence. So far this season, as a rookie, he has averaged 35.5 minutes per game and can contribute 27 points. Nothing beats data to tell.

'It was a very uncomfortable feeling to lose, but at the same time, the message from me and my team-mates in the dressing room was very clear that we have to be better than we are in the next games,' said the tall man at the end.

The Nets' unexpected loss still caused a stir in the league, especially in the New York media, which published articles in support or criticism, and fans also launched a heated discussion about it.

In particular, the compatibility of tall and strong and Lopez has become the focus of debate among basketball fans and the New York media.

Because whether it is tall and strong, Lopez is the top scorer in the league when pulled out alone, especially Gao Dazhuang, who is the top five super scorers in the league.

But Lopez's offensive rhythm is completely incompatible with Tall Strong, Tall and Strong advocates fast, fast advancement, fast ball transfer, fast shot, likes to hit the opponent with an unstable foothold, while Lopez likes to play high, is used to positional warfare, and is used to singles after pulling away.

Tall and strong is good at forcing the opponent's inside and shooting cold arrows outside the three-point line, both of which are very efficient ways to score, while Lopez likes to pull away singles in the low post and shoot from mid-to-long distance in the high post, which is actually quite efficient.

But their offensive positions often clash, and they didn't have any chemistry with each other, and the two of them accounted for the vast majority of the Nets' shots, resulting in the Nets' offense becoming tall and strong singles, Lopez singles, tall and strong singles... Such a vicious circle.

"I was part of the 1981 New Jersey Nets, and I admit that the Nets are a talented team with a lot of good players, but they don't have the mentality that we have, and they don't have the fighting spirit that we have" Even Nets legend Buck Williams joined the discussion, and the discussion intensified.

Buck Williams, who was drafted by the Nets as a rookie in the 1981 draft, spent the first eight seasons of his career with the Nets, so he has a high place in the history of the Nets: 635 games, 23,100 minutes, 7,576 rebounds, 10,440 points, 3,981 shots, and 2,476 free throws...... Williams holds a total of 13 all-time team records.

Buck Williams commented on a live broadcast on a local television station in Brooklyn: "I've never seen a Nets team with such talent, but they have to realize that they are nowhere near as good as they thought they were!" ”

The reason why Williams said this has nothing to do with the ups and downs of the Nets' form: in the Russian City, they were able to play offensive basketball, seal the game in the third quarter, and beat the league-leading Thunder, but back at home, they lost ugly to the Wizards, who are at the bottom of the league.

Regarding the controversy between Tall Strong and Lopez, Buck Williams believes that "Tall Strong and Lopez have to be sacrificed!" (To be continued......)

PS: I've always been curious, which book friend likes the new chapter every day? ：）